Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder
by nimueaeon
Summary: A tormented man lives under the Palais Garnier, but that all changes when Shayne Corsiva drops in his lair unexpectedly.His past haunts his thoughts and dreams but can he escape the hell he created for himself or will he crash and burn.
1. Prolouge

March, 2008

The sound of life slipped up through her window in her bedroom. She rolled out of the bed as she did every morning. As she reached the shower she saw the picture of him she had taken so long ago sitting on a table by the bathroom. She showered thinking of him and dressed into her cute maternity clothes while wondering what he was doing right now. Then mustered enough strength to bring her swollen ankles down stairs to grab some food from the cafe under her condo.

She sat at a table outside the front doors and drank some chamomile tea to ease her nausea. She wrapped her hand around her growing stomach gently to feel the flutter of life beneath her skin. The people walking by were oblivious to her inner toil as they talked and chatted idly. She smiled a ghost of a smile at a couple that walked by and asked her about her baby. After finished nibbling on a pastry she wobbled back upstairs to her home. To escape the niceties and bright faces of the happier people.

The necessities of life had started to tire her but she got up everyday and acted normal. She washed and ate. Then read a book for a while before going to the gym to ride their exercise bikes and walk on the treadmill. She knew this was no life to live. For three months since the day she was back in the 21st century she had moped. The first month she had no clue what was going on with her body but after she didn't have her period the second month she knew.

The third she started to get ready for a baby. She bought clothes and decorated a room in her condo she purchased. She had to stay in France after all that had happened because of the need to still be close to him. Even if not in the same time she wanted to stay in his home country to raise their child. She wanted him to be proud of his father and his home country. She wanted a lot of things for her child that she never had.

She would visit the opera house every week and watch people perform. She felt closer some how. And even though he was nothing like the man on the movie every time she watched his movie she cried her eyes out. Maybe it was the hormones. Maybe the self pity. She didn't know but she really didn't care. Every time she looked around her condo she wished she were somewhere else. Somewhere dark but comforting.

As she searched the rooms for dust and reached a room that she could barely enter without thinking about him. A piano sat in the middle of the room. His piano. It was auctioned off in 1913 after a search of the theater by firefighters. Many things were unearthed from his lair during the early 1900's. She had been frustrated while she was looking for this exact piano. Thank God it never left Europe.

She ran her hand across the rosewood. It shined so bright she could see her reflection in the wood. The legs were hand carved and added that Victorian flare to the old piano. It had been restored since then and as she sat at the seat in front of the keys she studied their luminescent color. Her fingers glided over the tops smoothly making no sound.

She yearned to play but her fingers trembled at just looking at the thing. She was so close to him right now she could picture him sitting in this exact spot. Her eyes teared up and stung at the creases. The tears begged for release as they pooled in her eyes before they started to roll down her cheeks. She wiped them away knowing that crying would not do anything for her right now.

So she played. She stoked the keys into beautiful harmony that would make him proud. She played for herself because this was all she had of him. His love for music. But she also played for their unborn child. When it would be moving around in her stomach she would key something on the piano until it soothed down. She finished a piece he had wrote and stood up.

After eating a small lunch she started sweeping and dusting. She moved around her living room cleaning the floor and picking up a few things out of place. She washed a load of clothes and filled the sink up with water and soap. She thought absently about how things could have been different. Her hand instantly moved to her belly, she would never take back this part of her life.

She was about to start birthing classes at a local hospital in Paris. She was going to be alone at the classes but she thought about a few friends that she wouldn't mind going. She didn't know where this was going to lead her all she knew is she wanted her baby to be healthy.

The window in her living room had a sitting ledge where she read most of the time. She liked the view she got of the town. At sundown she had a gorgeous sky radiant with color. But today she did not read, instead she sat down with a blanket and looked off into the distance. She thought of her time under the opera house and recollected the events that led her to where she was now.


	2. Palais Garnier

Ch 1

September, 2007

Shayne sank comfortably into her shoes in front of the Palais Garnier, the columns were carved with delicate figures as she stood in their glamorous shadow . Large windows stared back at her ominously as she stepped forward towards the large ornament doors. The building was a perfect example of French Architecture with it's high curvature style and many sculptures, the monument of Paris' finest ballet and opera. She shivered as she entered the opera house.

The front room that greeted her led to two pavillions. A large marble staircase decorated with onyx led to a rotunda for the multitudes of people that go in and out everyday. Mosaics decorated the floor with dashes of color as she peered at the large doors that led off to the rooms of the sun and moon. It was cozy inside and almost had to slink out of her coat.

She walked in the front doors of the theater and was surrounded by rich splendor of marble and velvet. The massive ceilings were painted by Marc Chagall in an array of colors illuminated by a large chandelier of crystal rainbows. Thousands of seats were layed out before her in a sea of brown pleated clothe. They surrounded the instrument pit and looked upon the stage where two large red velvet curtains hid backstage.

People surged through the stage and filled the rooms with life. Their shouting carried through the halls in a loud echo of voices. She let the aura of the room surround her in an envelope of comfort. She spun around and glanced at the balconies that were above the first floor in their sculptural splendor. Shayne started walking down the isle of seats and made her way back stage to the dressing rooms of all the actors to get them ready for their rehearsal.

Feet padded through the opera house as everyone got ready for their rehearsal. They ran, they scattered around in a bundle of confusion. Three people sat in front of her and they still didn't have their makeup on. Shayne pulled makeup and brushes out her tan messenger bag and started applying heavy makeup on the first girl's scarred face. She could make anyone look natural with makeup. It was a gift.

She settled in the chair and finished the lead in the opera. She made faces as she worked on the last actor. The voices surrounded her as she worked with nimble fingers around the actor's face.

"Are you almost done with Jack 'cuz I need him soon on the floor," Her manager called out to her.

"Yeah, almost done," she answered.

She put the finishing touches on his face and put her brushes back into the tan bag. She walked around while they rehearsed and watched them sing and act. They were slow at first and started picking up their lines on time. She walked over to the manager and smiled.

"What's up Shayne?" she said softly.

"You don't need me anymore so I figured I would go look around the opera house," Shayne answered slowly.

"All right that's fine, just be careful. You never know these days."

She walked off and headed for the front entrance. She paced over to the signs and read the plaque about the Opera House of Paris. It burned down in the 1800's and was rebuilt back on top of the old opera house. She ascended the stairs one by one thinking all the way that they need an elevator. She reached the top of the tower and stared at the paintings and stained glass of angels. She ran her hands over the window sill and sat down next to a candelabra that looked ancient.

Shayne's eyes closed as she listened to the old opera house creak and moan with the sound of life. She pushed her auburn hair out of her violet eyes and blew out a loud sigh. A voice sounded through the heavy wooden door and she stood up startled. She ran over to the painting and planted herself in front of it. She didn't want to get into any trouble if she was not suppose to be here.

Two men walked in. They looked at each other in unison and smiled greasy grins. Their clothes were older and worn but fit loosely against their bodies. The tallest one had grey and brown hair that fell limply around his face. His eyes were dark and squinted making him have a conjoling aura. The smaller guy was thin with hollowed cheeks and grey skin but his green eyes looked intelligent even though he was blazing drunk. They closed the door soundly and one stood in front of it. Many thoughts ran through her brain at once. This is not good she thought to herself. Not good at all. The first man pulled on his pants with menace in his eyes. She knew now what it was they wanted. It was obvious.

She glanced around desperately for an outlet but knew that was the only way out. She backed all the way to the wall and felt around for something, anything to protect herself. Her shaky hands fumbled across the wall. The man looked back at his friend and his grin got wider.

They mumbled something in French and laughed together. Her eyes jerked frantically around the room at the both of them, pleading. She knew they were going to come closer and try to grab for her. The first man lunged at her and grabbed at her clothes anxiously. She jumped out of the way the first time but the other man cornered her back against the painting. She pulled away from him but he held her closely to his body. His hot breath reeked with alcohol and sweat. She gagged and turned her face away as he slobbered on her neck. Tears flowed down her cheeks as she begged them to leave her alone.

He tore at her dark green shirt and she went crazy. She screamed at the top of her lungs and threw her whole body into him. She swung her bag around and hit him in the head and he fell against a wall scone. A door opened where the painting had once been and she slipped inside with no second thoughts. She could hear them yelling behind her like thunder rolling in the sky. She listened to their footsteps on the brick and vibrating along the walls.

Shayne tore down the steps as fast as she could with the lithe speed of a runner. Finally, she reached a hallway that was filled with large blue tapestries and old iron wall scones. It was dark and she could not see or breathe as her muscles and lungs gave out on her. Her leg muscles and chest ached as if being stretched and burned. She scampered down the hallway as fast as possible. Soon enough she found a turn and there was one scone lit in its entirety casting an eiry glow. Her sobs came out in soft pants because she did not want the men to hear her. Sometimes she would shove her fist in her mouth to keep from crying out. She felt along the walls but then heard them scuffling behind her to capture their prey.

She started to jog down the hallway to put distance between them and in the process she fell to the floor in a big huff. All the air that had been in her lungs flew out of her as she hit the puddle and stone. Her clothes soaked into the puddle of water like a sponge. There had been a missing slab of concrete where she now lay and it had filled with water. She just happened to fall in it. She looked around and could hear them getting closer. She wept from pain as she pulled her self up slightly on her arms.

Then she saw it. A slight breeze whispered through the hall and fluttered the tapestry just enough for her to see wood. A wooden door hidden behind the cloth was illuminated just slightly by the one scone that she almost laughed with relief. She scrambled to get up out of the water and hurried over to the tapestry. She pulled on the door with frustration, then pushed and it came open. Dust flew into her face and she had to blow her breath out as to not get any up her nose.

Shayne closed the door behind her and felt a stirring as if something had been sleeping for a long time and just woke up. A burst of air whooshed into her as if the opera house breathed. She descended the stairs quickly to put space between her and the men. As she reached the bottom she started to feel weird. She couldn't explain what it was but she knew it wasn't right. Her foot touched the last step and the ground beneath her trembled and shook. A light flashed in her eyes making her blind for a few minutes. Her knees fell to the dirt as she held on the side of the walls for support.

She traveled the empty space quickly and started sprinting down the rest of the stairs. She could hear sound coming from below. The sounds of the living. The light of a fire crackled along the walls of the staircase. The sound of water sloshing against brick penetrated her senses through her shed tears. She started running faster as she got her first sight of a living space.

There were candles lit everywhere in this darkness along with a lot of other things. Velvet was hung along the walls and roof. She took the last step and started running again. As she ran past things that she didn't see she ran right into a very hard male body. Tears streamed out her eyes as she fell against him and slid to the ground. She let out loud sobs of relief as she hugged his legs pulling on the pants that he wore. She cried on the floor next to him for god knows how long before she even looked up. But she never got to look up because he already picked her up into his arms. She collapsed into oblivion.

Erik looked at the girl that practically fell in his arms and frowned. She didn't look like any girl he had ever seen. At least not from where he was from. Her red brown hair crowned her face in a mop of curls that fell to her midsection. The tan pants and green shirt was like nothing he had ever seen. It wasn't like the men's clothes or the women's. Her skin was flawless and clear and her body was small and lithe. She moaned in her sleep so he carried her up the steps and into his domain.

He didn't want to take care of this girl who practically dropped down from sky. Women always fainted when they saw his face. His own mother couldn't even stand to stare upon his monster face. She was so beautiful, and beauty brought other things such as stupidity, frivolity, and hate for all things ugly. She was the kind of person that he hated, and he was the kind of person she hated. He reached the last step and turned around the corner to reach his bed.

He pulled her clothes off after much fighting with himself and turned his head away as he pulled one of his shirts over her naked body. She wore strange articles of clothing with bright flowery embellishments over her private areas. They fascinated him as he looked at their designs printed on them. He shook his head and buttoned up the shirt to her neck. He pulled the covers up over her wet body and sighed. He would wait until she woke up and then he would nicely deposit her above in the opera house. His father would say to not judge by what is on the outside but what is on the inside.

Erik stood up from his spot next to the bed and walked back down to where his piano sat majestically in the center of his abode. He almost smiled at its dark brown sleek beauty. Music. It was something he could love unconditionally and always put something back out into his life. Music was the only thing that could love and understand him the way it did. It brought him alive in so many ways that all he did was live and breath music. He paused and thought back to the girl in his bed. A woman could never understand him or just accept who he was because a woman relies too much on the superficial beauty.


	3. They Meet

**Dear readers, this story is mine but some of the characters are Leroux based. By name only. I really would appreciate it if you would review. I have edited them a bit and would really like someones opinion, good or bad. If you don't like it then let me know why you didn't like it. I have had 53 hits and no one had reviewed me. I MUST REALLY SUCK. LOL. But im serious. I think you don't like my story. If you don't like it could you please tell me why. I can't fix anything if you don't tell me.Thank you and Review.**

Shayne woke to the sound of someone singing. A male voice that called to her. It was filled with misery and despair. He sung of not knowing and loss. She pulled herself out of a bed that was carved from wood. It had a phoenix carved at the foot of the bed it's feathers curving around to the headboard as if it were trying to escape from the flames of rebirth. The coverlet was red and black a thick feathery comforter covering the expansion of the massive bed. A black velvet drape encircled the bed making her plight more difficult. She wandered down a small hallway to an alcove that led to some stairs.

His voice was sweeter now as she peeked around the corner seeing the man the voice was coming from. His hair was black as raven down, curling around his nape in soft locks and shined in the candlelight. The shoulders on him were full and broad the material on his coat stretched with the width of him. She could not see his face as she listened to him sing as he played on a large organ. The melody was sweet with adoration and longing.

He was so beautiful sitting there as he composed a song she didn't recognize. His body moved with a fluid grace across the piano that she almost moaned at the thought of those fingers on her skin. He had graceful hands that were built to play, with long fingers that had strong joints and flexible wrists. She couldn't even describe the feelings that he invoked inside of her from his voice alone. The voice of an angel. She closed her eyes to listen to the melancholy song.

She never noticed him stop playing. She never heard him move like a whisper in the darkness. Until he was there standing not two foot away from her. She jumped when she opened her eyes to see him staring at her with the most beautiful most sad blue eyes. The deep sorrow that filled his eyes like it filled his soul made her eyebrows furrow as she penetrated his stare. He gave her a weird look and it almost looked like his mouth turned down a little.

She didn't think much about the white expressionless mask he wore over his right side of his face. It's many questions that formed in her head swam around like fish but she kept quiet as they looked each other up and down. She glanced at his left side of his face and was jealous of such chiseled beauty. The left side was handsome,high cheekbones, well chiseled jaw and a dimple that curved around his mouth. He was fit to be a deity.

His eyes searched her, their blue depths scrutinizing every inch of her small frame. That expressionless mask held her in thrall but his eyes were not cloaked and showed her everything she wanted to see. Those eyes that burned, were filled with hate and loneliness. She smiled a big tooth filled smile the white leather mask he wore attracted her more to this enigmatic man.

His voice boomed and echoed off the walls," Who are you?"

She held out her hand, "Hello, my name is Shayne.

"Shayne," he said softly letting it roll off his tongue, "I had to give you some new clothes. Your other ones were ruined."

"Thank you," she said looking around.

"How did you get here?"

She shrugged," I don't know. Once I was in a tower and next I woke up here."

"What happened to you?" he said turning around to look straight at her.

" I was being chased,"she looked down at the water and said more to herself than to him, "Something happened, the lights got all strange and the ground shook all around me. I followed the light that was coming from down here and I found you. Or you could say you found me."

He was quiet for a while so she sat on the steps and watched him. He was doing something to the boat, but she didn't know what. He was tying some ropes down by the shore and that's when she started to wonder. She didn't know where she was and who he was. His clothes look different too. She shook her head and decided that this wasn't the time. She was sure someone would come looking for her soon if she didn't show up for rehearsal. She didn't want anyone to worry.

"What is your name?" she finally asked when he did not give her one.

"My name…,"he paused over the words, "My name is Erik."

"That suits you, I think."

He looked over at her and stood up his body tall and lean. He did not look like someone who should be living in a cave. She looked right into his face when his eyes caught her small frame. He gave her a look that sent chills down her spine and goosebumps to form over her skin. It was like flames licking all over her body that sent her nerves to tingling. He turned away when she made her eyes contact his crystalline blue ones.

"I want you to leave now."

She turned slightly, "Yeah, I'm just going to walk out of here in a T-shirt and a pair of underwear. That will go over real well with my boss and the rest of the people in the theater. Besides, where would I go?"

"I don't care where you go after you leave here."

She narrowed her eyes, "Are you serious? I mean come on dude where am I going to go? I really don't know where I am," she raised her eyebrows, "Where am I anyways?"

He shrugged, "Do you mean Paris, France?"

She slapped her hand against her forehead, "Oh yeah. Paris."

"So after you get dressed, do you want to go back up."

"No."

He crossed his arms, "Your not staying here."

"Whoa, I'm not going back up there. First of all I know no one in Paris and second, have you looked at yourself. Someone must be playing a joke on me because you look like you stepped out of a history book," she said as she moved around the room to pace.

"Come out guys," she yelled into the nothingness, "The jokes over. I figured it out."

Erik pursed his lips, "Are you crazy? I don't know what a joke is but there is no one here but me."

"I'm not crazy. Maybe you are crazy," she laughed hysterically.

He nodded his head, "I know of my insanities."

"Well I'm not leaving," she sat down on the steps and huffed, "Crazy or not I want my crew to be able to find me."

"I can remove you by force or willingly. Which would you prefer?"

Her eyes formed slits, "You wouldn't dare?"

He smirked, "Try me."

"My answer is still no."

When he started to move closer she got ready to run. After reaching about four feet she jumped up and darted around the room. He chased her around and she led him in circles around his piano as he tried to grab for her. It was all good fun because halfway through the chase she started laughing

"Run. Run as fast as you can. No one can catch me because I'm the gingerbread man," she yelled out over her shoulder as she moved to a new obstacle.

This comment made her go into a fit of laughing and almost got her caught in his arms. She took a deep breath and smiled at him from around a table. She threw things in his foot space as he came fast behind her. He tripped sometimes but other times he threw them far away from him.

His voice was airy and deep as he bent over his knees, "Girl, you try my patience. Get over here."

"Oh yeah. That's real convincing right there. Like I'm just going to come over there so you can kill me. I think not," she said sarcastically.

"I'm not going to kill you. I'm just going to strangle you until you pass out," he sounded like he was trying to tease her as he leaped forward to lunge at her.

She scrambled out of the way and moved towards a drape of velvet. He smiled wickedly as he prowled towards her, "I've got you now."

She plastered herself up against the wall and looked him straight in the eyes as he moved closer. He had a triumphant look on his face. She smiled sheepishly and shrugged her shoulders. He took her chin in his hand and got face to face with her.

"It was all in good fun at least," she said optimistically.

He let her go, "What? Trying my patience is fun."

She thought about it for a minute, "Yeah, it was pretty fun."

"Can we go now?"

She dropped to her knees and clasped her hands together in prayer form "Please. Please please please don't make me go. Erik I want to stay here. What if I leave and no one finds me. I'll be all alone. Anything could happen to a woman like me if I were alone."

Erik sighed, "Alright. Just don't bother me and only for a little while."

"Thank you."

He strode up the stairs into the room where the bed was. She stood up and walked up behind him into the room.

"Can I get something to wear?"

He sent her a glare from across the room, "I will get you something to wear."

He pulled off his shirt not realizing she was still there and gave her a lovely shot of his back. But instead of being flawless and beautiful it was covered in burn scars. The whole right side was scarred with what looked like boiling water being poured over his skin. She wondered if he had scars on his face too. That would make a lot of sense about the mask. But she didn't know why he didn't just have surgery to help with the scarring.

She stood in the bedroom with disgust showing on her face. How could someone do this to another living person? Her mouth hung open as her thoughts suspended in the air. She shook her head at those thoughts. Who could have done this?

Erik let out a breath as he turned around towards Shayne. The dark red hair fanned her face into a halo of luscious beauty. His gaze was filled with curiosity as he stared into her violet eyes. She was different. Her face filled with intelligence and innocence. Her being tore at him just by the close contact. He pulled his gaze away from her and threw the shirt over his head.

"You are an unusual woman, Shayne."

She quirked her lips, "There is no one in the world like me. I know"

"I will be back. I need to get a few items," he said quietly as he walked around her.

Erik ran up the stairs to the costume room two at a time. He did not want to leave the girl, Shayne, alone for too long. He didn't know how she got into his caves but it was a miracle that she didn't find any of his booby traps. He finally reached the room that held all the old costumes. He looked through them carefully and picked three different dresses. One was a violet like her eyes, another dark green, and the last was light pink with a white under coat that had lace on the edges. They would do he guessed.

He pulled the gowns into his arms and hugged their feminine scent to his body. They were soft in his hands and smelt of flowers. He started back down the stairs to descend closer towards a woman he didn't understand. She didn't recoil or act disgusted. She just seemed to accept that half of his face was covered by a mask. She was different but seemed to be just as alone as he was.

Shayne rolled back into the bed and stretched across it with no effort. She drifted back into sleep until she heard the footsteps upon the stone. He came back into the room with three garments in hand. He looked around and looked a little confused. Then he pulled on a rope and the drapes pulled apart at invisible seams. He approached the bed carefully as if he was wary of her and then put the dresses on the bed.

"I brought you three different dresses. I don't have a maid so you will have to settle with putting on your own clothes," he said as he turned away.

She jumped up and climbed on all fours to the end of the bed, "Wait."

He watched her move along his bed and groaned, "Yes."

"These dresses look like they came out of the 1700's. What are they? I have never worn a dress like this in my life," she said her voice full of exasperation.

He looked down at her, her body barely covered by the white shirt, "I will show you how to latch it."

He took one of the dresses and turned it so he faced the back. He undid the buttons and told her, "Leave some of the bottom buttons closed and pull the dress over your head. Do as many of the fasteners as you can and I will help you do the rest. I want to keep the decency between us."

He exited the room his feet making no noise. She pulled the shirt over her head and then pulled the violet dress back over her body. She fit into the dresses perfectly. She was about a size five, so the dresses were that or better. She moved over to find a mirror but didn't see one on any of the walls. The dress swathed to the floor covering her bare feet but made it hard for her to walk.

She looked down at the violet dress that covered her body with short sleeves that hung off her shoulders. It was a dark violet that matched her eyes and its material swathed around her delicately. She wished she could dress up everyday like this. In clothes that made her feel like a doll. She hooked as many of the buttons as she could but there were three that were just out of her reach.

With her voice soft and feminine she called his name, "Erik, please could you come back and help me."

She had her back to him when he walked in but he could see her creamy flesh peaking out from the back of the dress. She wore the violet dress that was tight around the waist and fell to the floor. It had shoulder straps that slipped off her shoulders leaving them bare. She cocked her head to the side to look back at him and he saw only violet and cream. She was stunning with her dark red hair and deep amethyst eyes.

"My ribs hurt really bad. I think they are bruised," she turned around and felt under her breasts on her ribs.

He closed his eyes wanting to rub them from all the stress. She was torturing him from the inside out. He couldn't handle a female around him. Especially this one.

"I'm sorry. I know I make you uncomfortable but it is a bizarre situation," she said as she walked over to him. She turned around so he could button her up and kept silent. His fingers moved silently along her back to button the seam. She shivered as he moved up her spine to the already latched buttons. He turned her around, his hand resting lightly on her shoulder so he could look straight into her eyes. Erik's eyes bore deep into her being making her body shake. He felt her tremble under his grasp and turned quickly from her to self consciously touch his face but not before she glimpsed the hurt that showed in his crystalline depths.

Shayne followed him over to where he had moved to and captured his large hand into her very small hands, "I am not afraid of you."

He pulled his hand away from hers and his voice got angry, "I do not want pity."

"I do not pity you. I just don't understand why you would stay down here," she raised her voice along with his.

He spun around to face her his eyes piercing blue, "Do you think people want to look at me. People don't just accept the devil's child. How could I just act like I'm normal."

"What about surgery? Couldn't you just as easily get it fixed to make you more comfortable with yourself. I mean people do it all the time just for a bump in their nose," she argued.

"What do you mean surgery? I have never heard of people doing this surgery," he looked at her as if she was the one living in a cave.

"I can't believe you don't know what surgery is. Isn't France more advanced than America anyway?" she exclaimed in a high voice.

"What is America? Who is she?" he asked.

Shayne suddenly started to pace the room holding her head in her hands, "Oh my God. Oh, I knew something was wrong. Oh, it can't be true. I must be crazy."

Erik walked over to her and grabbed her arm, "What is wrong?"

"Where is my bag that I had with me when I came to you?" she asked desperately.

He moved over to a chest in the room and opened the top the reveal her bag sitting nice and safe inside. She snatched it out of his hands and jumped onto the bed to pour it's contents on the blanket. Erik stood at the side of the bed next to her to stare at all her things that poured from her purse. She picked up the phone and looked up at him, "Have you ever seen one of these?"

He shook his head and she picked up an I-Pod, "How about this? Do you know what this is?"

He shook his head once again and picked up the phone and stared at it dumbfounded at what it could be. Shayne unwrapped the ear phones to her I-Pod and turned it on to the song that reminded her of Erik, The Music of the Night, from The Phantom of the Opera. She looked up at him and held out the ear phones, "Put them up to your ears. It is a song. Listen to it."

Erik put them up to his ears slowly not trusting these unusual objects. He got them close and jerked them away and glanced down at Shayne. She urged him on so he held them an inch away from his ears and listened to the perfect precision of an orchestra with a man singing sweetly. "Night time sharpens heightens each sensation darkness stirs and wakes imagination silently the senses abandon their defenses… slowly, gently. Night unfurls its splendor. Grasp it, sense it Tremulous and tender. Turn your face away. From the garish light of day. Turn your thoughts away, from cold and unfeeling light, and listen to the music of the night."

"What was that from?" his voice sounded breathless if a man could sound that way. He handed the ear phones back to Shayne and sat down next to her.

She turned towards him, "The Phantom of the Opera."

His eyebrow furrowed, "I feel something when I hear that song."

"That's because it was written for you, The Opera Ghost"

Erik stood up and walked to where it led to the stair case and turned towards her, "I will be back in a little while."

"Erik!" her voice level rose, "I know you must think I am crazy for saying this but I am not of this time. I was born on October 31st 1981. "

"I need to go think."

She cocked her head slightly as she looked over at him. He shook his head and walked down to his piano to play a melancholy melody. He stooped over the piano as he played, his fingers moving smoothly across the keys, gently. Shayne flung herself into the bed and tossed and turned while she cried silently. She didn't know what she was going to do. She had no idea what exact year she was in and knew no one except Erik, the phantom of the opera. Slowly she fell into a fitful sleep, where she dreamed of a masked man.

Erik couldn't fathom the concepts that Shayne was trying to lay down on him. The concept that a person could come 200 years back in the past was just too much for him to handle. He played on the piano consistently making the notes sound long and mystical. He moved to his music. He lived for the music that thrummed in his veins.

He thought about her and deeply considered the future. How were people in the new millennium? Were the people different or were they all the same? Many questions formed in his head as he thought until they swum furiously around in his brain. Was there a way to fix his deformed face? Could he be normal, and would he want to be? What about the woman in the next room? Was she more advanced than him? Did women even go to school? He thought about Shayne and her luminescent eyes as they looked upon him with kindness and even adoration.

As he drew back from the piano he drew out a long breath and breathed out slowly. His feet took him up the stairs before he knew it and he was suddenly standing next to Shayne's sleeping form. His hand unwillingly reached down to pull a few strands of her hair in between his fingers. It shined in the candlelight as he moved it around in his hands. He gazed at her face while it was relaxed and saw tears on her lashes. He wiped them away from her face, the contact causing her to roll over onto her back, a moan penetrating the silence.

Shayne's eyes fluttered open her body still floating from the dreams of sweet words and caresses. She smiled like a cat and stretched her arms over her head, "I must still be dreaming because your still here." She pulled him down into the bed with her and snuggled against him.

He just laid there, next to her not knowing what to do. He never just laid with a woman nonchalantly. Finally, as he contemplated what he should do, his body told him what to do as his arms fell around her shoulders. He tilted his head to look down upon her head that was buried in his chest and almost smiled under the mask.

Shayne wrapped her fist in his shirt he wore and smelled the scent of a man. His aroma was a mix of sandalwood and the night. A sweet lonely darkness that permeated her senses and her core. His touch lit her skin aflame with a tingling sensation that she thought was from dreaming although this dream felt very real, Erik's body was burning against her own making her want to beg for more of him. _She figured it was a dream. Right?_ So, she began to touch him, all over his expansive chest and shoulders. She ran her fingers lightly up his neck and grasped his hair in her hands and come to find out it did feel like silk across her fingers as she ran them through his mane.

Shayne looked into his eyes, smiled and said in a breathless voice, "You feel real. Are you real, Erik? Have I been dreaming this whole time? Am I even really here?"

Erik looked deeper into her lavender colored eyes and very seriously said, "If you are dreaming then I must be dreaming too, because I am very real and so are you."

Shayne sat up very quickly and turned to Erik, he leaned up on his elbow and turned his face towards her. The white masculine mask on the right side of his face shined in the candlelight bright and foreign to her eyes from the sleep. She squinted her eyes and pulled out her bag and found her camera. She held it out, "I want to capture this moment, please."

She held up the camera and looked into the eye piece. She pushed the button on top of the camera and flash. She pressed some buttons and looked at the picture of the phantom. His face was up turned and his eyes were light sea blue reflecting the sky. He was laid back in the black and red bed carved in wood as if he were where he was suppose to be. She turned around and pushed the camera into his view. He peered at it suspiciously and then moved closer as he saw himself but not as Shayne saw him.

His face contorted into confusion, "How did you put me in this box?"

Shayne turned around a little more to face him, "Well," she sighed, "where I come from you use this machine to imprint pictures on to small film and then develop it on to paper. It is a picture but not like a painting. You get what I mean?"

He nodded his head and said, "I think I understand. It is like our camera but smaller and easier."

"Yeah."

Erik got up and said, "I do not want my picture. My ugliness should never be shared with no one but those who know already," he walked towards the stair case, "Come downstairs."

As he walked down the stairs he heard a lonely whisper, "I do not think you are ugly."

Shayne made her way down the stairs and looked around. There was a lake to the left side of her and a piano in the middle of the room. The velvet hung down from all sorts of places making the cave more comfortable. Two tables sat to her right, one had writing utensils neatly placed on the top, and the other had some other materials used for who knows what. It looked like art supplies but not like the kind she would go get from a store. They all looked home made. There was a large cabinet that sat on the floor and reached almost to the ceiling. She looked at it carefully as she walked by it. Little faces were carved across the surface as if trying to escape.

She looked around but saw no one, so she sat down at the piano and looked at it's keys. She had not played in almost a year, but there was one song that she had memorized by heart. Fur Elise. It had to be one of her favorites. She put her fingers where she would start on the keys and then let her body take her away. Music had always brought her places. That was why she joined the troop of actors and singers. To be around what she had wanted to be as a child as her own mother sang lullabies. She opened her eyes and saw Erik standing next to a velvet curtain staring right at her. She stopped instantly and stood up, "I'm sorry. I don't know what got into me."

"No one has ever played that piano other than me," he stated as he strode over to the writing table and opened the cabinet doors. He pulled out two bowls and carried them back over by the velvet and disappeared behind it.

It wasn't long before he returned again with two bowls steaming in the shadows. He put the bowls down on the table and pulled some bread apart. Shayne moved next to him and smelt the savory aroma of meat and vegetables. Erik looked over at her the bowls sitting comfortably in his hands.

"You like to play?"

She smiled as he set her bowl on the writing table,"Yeah, I have been playing since I was ten years old. My father made me take lessons but I am glad now that he did."

Erik leaned up against the wall closest to her, "What else can you play?"

"I can't play very many songs on the piano by heart but I can play alot on the guitar."

"What is a guitar?" his voice sounded excited.

She peered up at him,"It is an instrument that is made out of wood. It kind of looks like a mandolin but the bottom is shaped different. It has a long neck with twenty-one frets and six strings that go down the neck to the body."

He looked like he was trying to picture it in his head and squinched his brow. Shayne turned towards him, "I could draw it if I had some paper and a pen."

Erik walked over to a drape and scrambled around where she couldn't see. He walked back out with a scroll and then pulled a pen from off his writing table. Shayne unrolled the scroll of paper and hunched over the writing table. She was still all except her hand which moved quickly across the paper. When she finished she held up the drawing and stared expectantly up at him. He examined the paper and smiled.

"I can make this."

Erik took the paper and his bowl of food with him as he disappeared around the corner. Shayne pulled the bowl into her hands and looked into its contents. It was filled with a brown gravy with carrots, potatoes, and beef floating around to make a stew. She ate hers greedily the taste and smell making her stomach growl deep in her gut. Shayne walked around looking at all the things he had laying around. He had a lot of papers that were rolled up and stacked up against each other.

"Do not touch those," Erik's voice projected from across the room making her jump.

Shayne turned towards where the voice was coming from and told him sternly, "I'm not."

Shayne finished with the food and set it on the writing table. She moved closer to the shore and looked intently into its depths. The candles reflected into the water and the boat knocked lightly up against the bottom of the lake. She squatted down and pulled her finger through the water, the ripples moving outward towards a gate in the water. Shayne thought of everything in her time and of all that had happened in the past two days. Erik was the most baffling person she had ever met in her life. He was beautiful but in the way the night is beautiful and silent.

**Review Please. You know you want to.**


	4. The Market

**Please people don't forget to review. I really would like to know what you think. I can't review myself. I can't look at my own work with a critical eye. So Please REVIEW.**

Ch 2

Erik held out a cloak of some kind towards her as she turned around away from the water. It was black and had a design stitched on the edges, the inside was lined in a violet cloth that almost matched her gown. She took it from his hands and looked at him curiously.

"If you are staying here then you will go out to the market and get anything I need. When I need it," he stated.

"Will you come with me?"she asked.

"No."

She looked up at his face, "Why not? I don't know where the market is anyway."

He rubbed his eyes, "Alright, I will go with you this first time. I will have to change into my cloak."

He ran up the stairs and came back out with his cloak covering his face. All she saw was shadows , no light or face. Shayne came to him and grabbed his hand into her own. Her eyes were wide as she looked up at him, "Lead the way, darling."

She felt his eyes upon her before he spun around and led her to a walkway behind a drape of velvet. He brought her through a maze , or so she thought as hard as it was to remember which way they had gone. They went up stairs and through hallways that led to small rooms. She held on to him tightly when it got dark, afraid she would lose him and never find her way back again. They came to a slender passage way and she had to jerk on his hand to get him to stop.

"What?" he demanded.

She pressed up against him, "Erik, I am out of breathe. My ribs feel awful."

Shayne couldn't see him very well but she could feel him shift against her and suck in air. She tilted her head upward as they stood in the middle of the dark and pushed her hand into the cloak to feel for his face. He suddenly stilled and she dug deeper and met with hot flesh. He groaned as she touched him across his neck and cheek. She grazed across his mask with her touch making him turn his head away from her.

"Don't," he whispered as he pulled his face away from her prying hands.

She heard him shuffle around his feet a little and then felt his hand grab for hers. He pulled her along through the narrow hall and finally they reached the end to a trap door leading to an underground room. It led to the grates that were at the bottom of the building in the alleyway. They crawled through the opening to find a gray day full of fresh air.

Shayne tried to stay as close to him as possible while they walked down the streets of France two hundred years before she was born. She struggled to look at everything and everybody as they walked pass. Once again they were to the point of jogging and she almost had to run to keep up with Erik. She jerked on his arm and saw his blue eyes turn towards her. He suddenly slowed down and walked at a more amiable pace. They turned around a corner and were instantly bombarded by people. He pulled her to the side and handed a scratch of paper with a few things scribbled on their contents, bread, beef slab, carrots, spices, paper, candles, and clothe. She tucked the paper in her dress and entwined her fingers with his to make their way down the market.

There were people everywhere and no ground was to be seen. They infested the market like a wave rolling onto shore. She could hear dogs barking around her and people trading with the booth owners. Crates were stacked up against buildings, some empty and some full with goods. The market smelled faintly of food with a light hint of smoke trailing to her nostrils.

Shayne traveled slowly like a child on her birthday. She peered and stared constantly at every booth and stand trying to soak in all she could. When does a person get to travel back in time? She could feel Erik's gaze on the back of her neck as they walked silently. Shayne saw some books and was instantly drawn over to the stall to look through their titles. She picked up a book and read the name slowly in French, " Notre Dame de Paris."

"Oh, I love this book," she cried as she hugged it to herself, "The Hunchback of Notre Dame."

She caressed the spine and looked up at Erik who was silent. He seemed to not be paying attention to what she was doing. She slowly put the book back in its place and walked towards another booth. This was a stall to a gypsy woman. The woman caught her attention with her long gray hair and chains wrapped around her forehead and neck. Bangles of different colors hung from her wrist and clanked together in harmony. She wore a long skirt and a colorful tunic that reached past her waist. Her smooth skin glimmered like honey and was beautiful in itself. She was old but looked fairly young for her age. When she reached the stall the gypsy paused and stared intently.

The gypsy woman froze when she saw her and then smiled, "So, you are the one."

Questions furrowed her brow, "What?"

"You have a lot coming for you in the future. You must learn that your own mask must be removed so you can love. To show love"

"He will come for you. He will let you go but he will come back."

Shayne moved closer, "What do you mean."

The woman smiled an all knowing grin, "It will come in time. Now go before he sees you talking with me."

Shayne slinked off and payed no attention as she thought about what the woman said. She never noticed Erik walking off towards a booth filled with books. Shayne ambled off and looked at a few more booths but her mind would not let her focus on the things around her.

Erik pushed the book she cooed over into his cloak and turned to find her talking to Rawnie. One of the gypsies that had taken him in when he joined her band of family 20 years before. She was one of the people with a heart. One of the few. Erik found his way back to her side and pulled her close to him. She tilted her head to peer at him from the corner of her eyes.

Erik glanced over at this woman who was so confident and everything that he was not. She puzzled him, and intrigued him. He didn't know why she would choose to stay with him when he was sure a pretty girl like her could go anywhere even in his time. He held her to him closely as he thought about earlier when she touched him so gently as if she could feel his pain, his suffering. He moved along with her as she asked for the things from the booths, and he paid for the items. They were coming up to the clothe stand his eyes being caught by a dark plum colored clothe. He pointed to two different materials and paid for them with a few franks from his pocket.

On their way back through the crowd she pulled close to him, squishing her petite frame up against his left side. He would not let her walk on his right but that didn't bother her. He was warm and smelt clean and fresh, like clean bath fresh. For a moment she looked up at him with questions in her eyes. She wanted a bath, but how did he get one. She vowed to ask him later. Finally they reached their way to the grate in the alley.

Erik opened the door and helped Shayne through the opening, after, holding the bags out to her to take into the building. She fell in behind him as they made their way back down to the lake at the bottom of the opera house. He knew the way, in the way that anyone knows their own house and made it quickly to the stairway that led to his living areas. He shifted the velvet drape that covered the opening and stepped into candle light. He pulled the cloak off of his shoulders and arranged it on a chair close by. He put the bags on the floor and led Shayne to the bedroom where she gawked at him when he left her there.

Shayne crossed her arms over her chest and stomped back out to the terrace leading to the stairs and scowled down at Erik. They had been silent the whole time they were at the market unless he was making his choice on something. She observed him for a long time and then sat down on the top step. She yawned and leaned against the wall while she watched him piddle with papers and colored material. Shayne's day dream began with him pressing her against the wall and taking advantage of her slowly and seductively . Then she heard a clatter of something fall and opened her eyes again.

As she thought of the gypsy woman she also thought of the bath that she so desperately wanted. She rubbed her forehead and leaned back against the wall. She wondered about Erik and how he came to live under the opera house. She knew the story of The Phantom of the Opera but did not believe that was the truth. What opera fanatic didn't know the tragic story of the man who loved a singer but did not love him back. The whole scenario causing a long chain of events during this time. She wanted to know who this ghost of a man was. Really who he was. Who were his parents? How did he grow up?

She went back into the room and pulled out a notebook she had in her canvas bag to write about the days she spent with the phantom of the opera. She finally found a pen in the bottom of her bag and opened to the first pages.

_Shayne Corsiva_

_My days in the opera of the phantom. _

_I arrived here in France on September 26t__h__ 2007 but the year in the time I traveled to was sometime in the mid 1800's. I met an enigmatic man who lives under the opera house in Paris France. His eyes pierce through me and see into my soul. He is beautiful but is plagued by an earlier abuse of feeling unloved but I don't pity him. I feel as if we are kindred spirits. I can not help but burn for him when he touches more than just my body. Even when I see his mask I feel even more attraction for him. His voice is a gift it's dark and husky beauty saturates into your mind, whispering little songs into my head. I dream of him touching me making me tremble beneath him. I am also troubled by all this. I have no idea how I got here and if Erik makes me leave I have no where to go. The end of the day will be here soon and end my first full day in the story of my life._

Shayne closed the book and set it beside her on the bed and looked up to find Erik laying a shirt out for her to wear when she decided to sleep. She pushed herself up in the bed and smiled, "Erik," she scuttled to the end of the bed, "do you want me here?"

He bent down to eye level to pick something from off of the floor and answered, "Not really," he saw her face as he stood up and said quickly, "I don't mean it like that, it's just… I don't usually share anything. Not my life or my belongings. I don't have people around and so I have never really liked the company, but you are not that bad." Erik looked up at her and smirked.

Shayne pulled him onto the bed and laughed, "I can't believe you just made fun of me. I'm not that bad, I could be worse."

He shrugged and sat up on one of his elbows, "What else would I do with you?"

Shayne's eyes got very dark as she gazed over at him, his changed also suddenly serious and like sapphires in the candlelight. She knew exactly what he could do with her but knew he wouldn't do what she daydreamed about. She leaned down into the bed and tilted her lips up a little, "Will you help me with my dress in a little while?"

He reached out and grabbed a strand of red hair, "Yes, if you wish."

Shayne closed her eyes as she just felt his fingertips against her flesh. She practically nuzzled into his touch as he cupped her face. The contact caused her to pant softly her body turning into jelly in response to his touch. She turned her head and kissed gently into the palm of his hand. He let his arm drop down on the bed and closed his eyes, "Please Shayne," his accent heavy on her name making her melt, "you torture me."

Erik pushed himself back up and so did Shayne. She turned her back to him and pointed to her dress. He unbuttoned all of the small pearls that hooked the dress together, showing more and more of her bare skin. She let it fall to the ground after he exited the room down the stone steps. She pushed on her purple and black skin on her ribs and sucked in a breath of air from the pain. Tears formed in her eyes from the touch. She shucked into the shirt he gave her and buttoned the front. She walked into the living area and let her hair fall around her face in supple tendrils.

She found him standing in a small alcove shuffling around some objects but had no idea what he was looking for. She stood in the doorway and tapped her foot against her leg as she watched him move around. His body was well worth appreciating, with his broad shoulders, narrow waist and muscular thighs. He was a dream. He spun around and caught her gawking at his ass. She smiled sheepishly and shrugged.

"What do you want?" he said and turned back around to finish searching.

She smiled, "Nothing really. Just appreciating the view."

He talked over his shoulder, "What view?"

"Well, the view of you I guess," she said as if insulted.

He spun around and pointed to his face, "There is no view here. How could you want this "

She threw out her chest and huffed, "Well, my mother always said, beauty was in the eye of the beholder. I don't think there is anything wrong with the way you look."

"You have never seen me," his voice was contorted by pain, thick and husky. He placed his hand over his face and hunched over as if he were cowering away from someone. Shayne tried to place her hand on his shoulder but he jerked away so she dropped it to her side. Loneliness radiated off of him in waves that caused Shayne to cry. Shayne strode out to face the lake, tears fell down her face with the sadness that reached to her essence. She bit her lip as they silently fell off her chin to drop into the water. They made small ripples in the glassy surface.

She was like stone at the shore unmoving with her hand on her cheek to wipe away the fresh tears that kept falling. Her body was tensely waiting for something as she thought about Erik. She heard a rustle behind her but did not turn to check what it was. Next thing she knew he was coming up to wrap his arms around her from the back. His erection was bulging against her bottom as he pressed against her to whisper in her ear, "Is this what you wanted? To want you?"

She leaned back into him and moaned quietly as he ran his hands down her neck to her waist and thighs. She closed her eyes and said in her throat, "When you want someone don't you want them to want you too?"

Erik slowly let go of her and moved away his anger evaporating as the time went by. She headed for the stairs as he backed away from her. She couldn't face him after such close contact. She practically had an orgasm at the shores of the underground lake from him touching her. She was sure she would catch fire if he even looked at her one more time. She ascended the stairs slowly and stopped when she heard him sigh, "I'm sorry."

"Erik," she whispered, "Someone as beautiful as you should not have gone through what you went through."

His face was as hard as stone when she turned back to look upon him before she disappeared around the corner. Shayne crawled into the wooden bed and tucked herself into the covers. She fell into a fitful sleep that soon changed from dreams of a masked man to nightmares of the past. High voiced cries ringed in the air as she slept. She flailed her arms helpless and frightened. Someone started to shake her and she opened her eyes to see very big indigo eyes gazing into her own.

Erik thought someone was hurting Shayne when her heard her cries for help. He had ran up the stairs as fast as possible to find her fighting with herself. She was screaming for someone to stop hurting her. She was dreaming about this man. He held her by her arms and forced her to wake up. She tried to fight with him but he hugged her to his body as she cried unconsciously. She looked like a deer in headlights when she first opened her eyes. They were wild and bright as if she were about to strike, until she realized where she was. Then she relaxed against him as she wept into his shirt.

She sniffled as she pulled away from his shirt which was now soaked in her tears, " I am so sorry. I have nightmares sometimes."

"You are not the only one."

He patted her hair and pulled the covers back up to her neck to tuck her in. He went to go leave through the alcove when she sat up and screeched, "Don't leave me alone, please"

He knew how that felt. Not wanting to be alone was a powerful thing. He situated himself back on to the bed and took off his shoes so he could lay down beside her. He pulled her into his arms and laid back into the pillows with her resting against his chest. She wrapped her arms around his waist and closed her eyes back again to try and fall asleep. As they lay there she could feel Erik's tension against her own uptight body. Finally he asked, "What happened to make you so afraid?"

She was half dazed when she answered, "I don't want to talk about it."

He lay with her until she fell back into a deep and restful sleep. He crept slowly out of the bed because he did not want to wake her. He finally reached his work table and finished cutting on the plum material to make a dress for Shayne. He wanted it to be puffed up around the top where the sleeves and breast area would be and have a ribbon wrapped around under the chest. The dress would fall in a flow of clothe to the floor in the roman style. He sketched it out on paper to get the shapes right for the gown.

He stayed up late working intently on his creations. Some times switching from the sewing to the piano. He usually slept only when he needed to but tried to not slumber due to his nightmares. It caused him to cry out unconsciously and talk to people that weren't there. He finally crawled into the bed next to Shayne late into the night to pass out completely.

When Shayne woke up the next morning she found herself alone. She moved around the room to discover a plum colored dress lying across a chest. She pulled it over her head and situated it around her body. She wished she could look at herself in a mirror to see how she looked in this fashion. She tried pinning her hair up to push some out of her face so it wouldn't get in her way. She paced down the stairs, a plate of food already set out for her on a table. The food got ate quickly so she could find the man in the mask. She would have to thank him for the dress and for cooking such good food.

As she set the plate down, the man in question showed up through another hidden door. His eyes were caught by her figure standing next to the table, she was wearing the dress he had made for her making him gape. He closed the distance between them with no effort. He slid his gloved hand over her shoulder to touch the sleeve of the dress. "You look excellent," he said as he dropped his hand to his side.

Shayne smiled, "I really love this dress. It is beautiful," she glanced down at his chest and looked back up at him, "I also wanted to thank you for the food. You cook very well."

Erik started to rummage through a desk his attention elsewhere. Shayne sat down on a bench and watched him move. She did this almost every time he stopped paying attention to her. She leaned on her hand that rested on her knee and sighed. She wanted to take a bath really bad. She hadn't taken one in almost three days because they had taken a train from Italy to France.

"Erik, I was wondering if there was a way I could bathe."

He stopped, "I could arrange something."

He went to his wall cabinet and pulled out a white fluffy towel. He had to peer over his shoulder to get a good look at her, "Follow me."

Shayne followed close behind him as he moved through empty corridors. The walls were covered in gold scones and were all lit making the halls feel alive with shadows and candlelight. The darkness danced across the walls in a foray of shapes. She wondered where he would take her so that she could bathe. The halls all melted together as she was lost in thought. Finally they reached a door that was wooden. It had many knots along the smoothness of the dark wood and the cast iron holding all the wood together was clean and black. Erik pushed the portal open and she was bombarded by flashes of marble and stone. The tub seemed to be carved into the stone but there were pilots under it that had to be lit.

Erik walked in and turned a faucet that let clear fresh water pool into the stone. He leaned down and lit two pilots underneath giving her a great view from behind. He stood up and turned towards her, "The water is going to need a few minutes to warm up but after that it should be good to bathe in. Is there anything else you need?"

Shayne shook her head and looked around. There was a pedistool to sit on to take shoes off. There was also a small marble counter top sitting in the corner of the room. The cabinets underneath held many soaps and the such for bathing. To her surprise Erik still stood in the doorway watching her.

Shayne smiled, "What? You wanna take a bath too?"

He looked behind her at the tub and then back at her, "I don't think you would want to take a bath with me. I would take up too much room."

She laughed, "I am sure we could manage if you really wanted to."

He shook his head, "You really are something else."

"I know."

She pulled the dress off her shoulder after unclipping the back. She looked straight into Eriks deep almost black blue eyes and closed the door slowly as she let the dress fall to the ground as it shut. She turned around and sat on the stool and waited for the bath water to fill up. She studied the soaps under the cabinet, rose oil, sandalwood soap, even liquid shampoo that smelled like lavender. She poured a few drops of oil into the warm water and looked down at her bruises. She really needed something for this. She dipped her hand into the water and stood up to lower her body into the warm water.

She sighed as she sucked in the scent of roses and sandalwood. She rubbed her scalp to relieve the pressure on her skin making her want to submerge. She disappeared under the clear water making bubbles form on the surface giving it an underwater sea look. She emerged to the surface and gulped for the sweet air. She poured the soap on her hair and lathered it into a white foam. Her skin was getting softer and softer the longer she sat in the water. She washed her body with the sandalwood soap and just soaked in its soothing comfort.

Water dripped as she got out of the tub so she grabbed her towel and wrapped it around her body. It enveloped her in cotton that was warm and comfy against her skin. While drying off her wet form she wrapped her hair up in the towel. The dress slid over her frame and she clipped the back while thinking about him. The door opened easily to reveal an empty corridor. So, she walked down to the left and headed back towards where she thought Erik came from. After trudging down a corridor that she didn't recognize she started to feel uneasy. She was going the wrong way, but she wanted to know where this led to. A dead end seemed to be the place it led.

She turned around and sighed knowing she had lost her way. Then she heard voices. Spinning she faces the dead end to find light now filling the opening. Two girls sat in a dressing room and they were talking about the phantom of the opera. One girl was sitting at a mirror brushing her light blonde hair. Her skin was white as alabaster and her eyes were a light shade of blue. She was beautiful but she seemed very shallow and too much into herself as she admired her own form. The other had brown hair that was like chestnuts. She seemed to be very superstitious as she talked like she knew this man. She was soft looking with gentle features and big brown eyes.

"Christine, the phantom is said to have no nose and sunk in eyes that are red, " the brunette claimed to her friend, "But I don't believe that, he is probably just a man like every other man."

"No," she disagreed, "He is the angel of music."

"There is no such thing as an angel of music."

The blonde girl turned, "My father has sent the angel of music to me. He is the one who has been tutoring me."

"Well I heard Joesph talking and he said the phantom likes to take women down to his lair and," the brunette paused.

"I don't think he takes girls to teach them of sexual pleasures. I think he takes them to teach them how to sing."

She had to stifle a laugh as they talked about sexual pleasures. They must of heard because they became silent and glanced where she was with wide eyes. They then looked to each other.

"It's him. It is the phantom," the girls whispered.

The girls finished up in silence and walked out the dressing room, closing the door behind them.

Shayne felt the walls wanting to go into the dressing room and look around. She knew Erik would have a latch somewhere around the door that led to this room. He was a genius. She found it hidden as a jagged rock. It looked like a normal rock until it twisted to make a complete 360 degree turn. The door swung open on its own accord to let her step into the room. When she looked to where she was standing it made her smile. It was a two way mirror. How convenient. After rummaging through a few drawers she found a diary and a few black ribbons. She thumbed through the diary and paused on the last entry.

"I have not seen my angel of music for many days. I feel that he has deserted me. I try to hear him while I am in my room but all is silent. I think my father has forgotten me in heaven. I can still hear him singing songs silently in my head. But I know now that I have been selfish to want to hear him speak but I can't resist. I can't resist the temptation of knowing this angel who has been teaching me for so long. I yearn to see his face and hear his voice. But I fear that this will never happen. Because deep down inside I feel that I could love him for his voice alone."

She replaced the diary and the ribbon and made her way back into the passageway. She closed the door and stood there thinking about the woman that Erik was in love with. She knew that he must have stood right where she stood now looking in on the beautiful blonde girl. She kind of felt hurt as if she had been betrayed but the man in the mask was not hers and she knew this. She rubbed her face and ran right into a hard substance. A wall maybe.

Erik stood before her in a black jacket, black pants and a white dress shirt. He grabbed her arm and frowned with disdain. He dragged her behind him in a fluff of plum clothe and white cotton atop her head. He held her arm at a exceedingly strong rate making the blood pound and numbness along her arm form. She jerked back her arm.

"You are hurting me. Stop!"

"What were you doing?"

"Nothing," she replied, "Just spying on your girlfriend."

His voice was deep, "You will never go back there again. Do you hear me?"

"Why?"

"Because... This is my opera house."

"So."

"Shayne, Christine is my student, nothing more."

"Oh please give me a break. Do you think I am that stupid? If so, you are mistaken Erik because I know your story and I know what happens between the two of you," she rattled off in anger.

"Is that so? What happens between her and I?"

"You're in love with her. I don't need a book to tell me that," she threw up her hands and walked away in the opposite direction.

"Where are you going?" he demanded.

"Away from you. God I can't do anything. If I want to stare at your stupid superficial girlfriend then I will and there is nothing you can do about it."

"Oh yeah?"

Shayne huffed, "Yeah!"

Erik picked her up and threw her over his shoulder before she could do anything. She hit him simultaneously on the back but it was not effecting him at all. As a matter of fact he laughed. At her. She couldn't believe it.

"Erik!" she screamed, "I'm going to make you regret this for the rest of your life."

He laughed harder his chest heaving against her small body, "Are you now?"

"Yeah I am."

They reached the bottom of the opera house, but she had already given up her mission to get away. He placed her on the bed and looked down on her.

"Are you done?" he said with arms crossed.

She buried her face in the covers and ignored him. She felt like a child. A very spoiled child.

Erik sighed, "Well, I did have something for you but, if your going to act like that then I don't think you shall get it."

"What?"she turned, her voice haughty, "You were going to beat me next?"

Erik's face suddenly became very serious, "No, No Shayne. I would never do that to you."

"Sorry."

Erik sat down beside her and pulled something wrapped in paper out of his jacket. He knew she would like it. She had an appreciation of books just as he did. He loved the knowledge they lent to him. He handed it over to her and smiled. She looked excited, like a child. He felt balmy on the inside as this emotion filled him up. He didn't know exactly what it was but he knew it was good.

**Don't forget to review. Thanks for reading.**


	5. The Opera House

**This is a chapter that I hoped would give a good description of the Palais Garnier. I had to do alot of research on this building to finish this chapter. Please review and let me know what you think. I hope everyone likes it. **

**Ch 3**

Shayne let the paper slide under her fingers as she went to rip it open. She looked over at Erik who stared intently at her. Her mind wondered on what he got her. She glimpsed the cover and jumped up in delight making noises that only a girl could do. She turned to him and leaped into his arms.

"Oh Erik,"she said as she planted kisses all over his face, "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you."

Erik sat awkwardly with her in his lap, "Shayne is was nothing. I saw you with it and I knew you would like it."

She held his face in both of her hands and focused her eyes to his. She was mere inches apart and she could feel his breath on her face. She moved in closer and connected her lips with his. At first she didn't think he was going to kiss her back but slowly he started to move with her. She pushed her hot tongue into his mouth to touch his with ease of someone who has kissed before. She caressed his neck with the tips of her fingers and stole his breath away. She felt he was sucking out her soul. Or maybe their souls were mingling.

She broke the contact her eyes still open and filled with something new. She couldn't explain it now. She let her hands linger on his mask, but she did not take it off. She wanted him to take it off on his own choice.

"Erik," she whispered, "I know that bad things happened to you. The world is a cruel place. People are cruel by nature but I hope that you can come to accept that I am not those people. I hope you can come to trust me."

She looked up his face was contorted in a way that she could not explain. He did not look like he was angry or upset he was just motionless.

"You kissed me."

He got up with ease to head down the stairs. His mind struggled with this because no one had ever really saw him. Even his white mask and cold eyes made women faint. He remembered all those times at the carnival show with peoples perfect faces jeering at him. He saw them as his keeper pulled the sack from over his head. They were horrified that someone could be born with a face like his. That gut retching feeling mixed with the sweet emotions inside of him made him feel as if his blood was boiling.

He tore a drape down and revealed a hidden mirror. He held his face in the cradle of his hand and tore his eyes away from the wall to stare into his cold blue gaze. He wore his usual dress clothes mostly black besides his white dress shirt. His face was as hard as stone as he looked upon his own reflection. He wondered if he couldn't love this face how could anyone else love him? He knew what dark thoughts filled his mind and they weren't always butterflies and daisies.

Pushing away from the wall, he grabbed a hand full of brass latches and threw them across the room. They clattered against the stone going unnoticed. He heard small feet as they moved through his home. She appeared suddenly at the top of the stairs wearing a white gown. It was covered in lace and had a white silk under dress that was to her ankles and the lace swathed to the ground moving as her feet walked. She was down next to him before he knew it and turned him towards her face.

"You're not hurt are you?" concern registered in her eyes and she looked him up and down, "I heard a crash and thought something hit you."

"I am not hurt. Leave me, please. I do not want you to see me in this state. Go!"

Shayne tried to argue, "Erik. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you mad, please don't make me leave. I didn't want to upset you."

"Just go now! Please Shayne," his eyes bore into hers but when he said her name she could do nothing but obey him.

She turned and walked back up the stairs to the room. When she went back downstairs he was gone. He had disappeared as the phantom was known to do and left her to her own devices. She sat down on the bed and started to write in her notebook.

My days in the opera of the phantom

I know I didn't say anything about the market but with all the excitement I forgot to mention that Erik and I went to the market and while I was there I met a gypsy. She had to be at least 50 years old but didn't look a day over 30. She talked about a lot of different things saying that I couldn't love unless I found my true self behind the walls I had built around my heart. She also said that he would give me up but would come back for me. I know she meant Erik but how could he give me up if he won't accept me. And if he gives me back to my own time how will he get me back? Erik gave me a book that I absolutely love. I swear a man after a woman's heart with everything he's got packing. I can't believe people are so stupid to let such a good thing pass them by. I have only been here for two days but even I can see his good heart behind the real mask. He tries to hide it but I don't know why. Oh yeah, on the other hand, remember to not let Erik catch me spying on Christine. Bad idea. He is in love with her. He has been teaching her for a long time and loves her beauty. Her light to his darkness. Even if I were trying to love him I never had a chance. It's a story told over and over again. He loves her. She is horrified by his face and takes off with Raoul or who ever his real name is. Figures. Well this day is about to begin I hope..

Shayne closed the spiral notebook and leaned back into the pillows to stare at the ceiling. She needed something to do. She felt so useless just sitting around sometimes. She picked up the book that Erik had given her. Its letters Notre Dame de Paris were printed on the spine making her want to caress its cover. She loved the story and why it was written. Trying to save a building that is part of your culture is important. This book caused a lot of intrigue in the Notre Dame making the building a monument of France. She opened the first page and started reading a story she had already read in English and French.

She was into two chapters before she heard Erik down stairs again. She felt like she had done something wrong but all she did was kiss him. There was nothing wrong with that. She folded her book up and went to stand at the top of the stairs. He was leaning over his desk his hair was a little out of place and when he moved it was very stiff. She didn't want to make him mad so she just watched him. He was still for a while but the light was playing on the side of his face perfectly.

Her bare feet were silent on the stone as she moved down the steps. She placed her hands lightly on his shoulders and pulled his head in between her breasts.

"Relax Erik. You are getting so worked up. Please just calm down your scaring me."

His body was rigid but she could feel his muscles melting beneath her fingers. She kneaded his shoulders with steady fingers and lowered her face to his. She whispered softly, "I'm sorry for upsetting you."

He raised his hand to his temples and rubbed them, "It wasn't you Shayne. I just don't think you would understand."

"Erik, how could you know if you won't tell me."

He sighed, " It's complicated."

Shayne moved up his neck, "Everything in life is complicated."

"You really want to know?" he turned his face towards her, "You are nothing like my world. You aren't even musically inclined. But when you kissed me you gave me something willingly that no other woman has ever given to me. Because of this face I suffer. Maybe even because of my mind."

Her mouth was wide, "I- There is nothing wrong with your face. It has nothing to do with your face. A face isn't even important."

"A face has everything to do with it. This face," he yelled pointing at it, "Made my mother hate me. It caused my father's death and almost my death. Do not tell me that a face isn't important when you are not the one wearing it."

Her voice was soft, "Erik, people are stupid. They never know a good thing when they see it. Don't blame me for being the only one to see it."

He sighed, " I apoligize. Anger is my worst enemy and sometimes it gets out of control. I'm going to go change and then I be right back down."

Erik stood up his eyes keeping to the ground and grabbed clothes out of a closet close to the bathroom. As he pulled his clothes off he stretched. He reached down under the cabinet and found the jar filled with white cream. He removed his mask and applied it to his scarred skin. His face felt tight but the cream made it softer and helped with the pressure. He replaced his mask over his face before he redressed into some new clean clothes. He walked down the corridor back towards her.

He put his old clothes in a small bag to be cleaned. His mind was running at a fast pace with what he was going to do with Shayne. He couldn't let her sit around because he knew a girl like her will get bored quickly. He had to keep her mind going like he had to keep his going. Only more knowledge would satisfy.

He moved the drape and ducked into the room. Shayne sat at the piano. She was not playing but merely staring down at the keys. She looked like she was playing something in her head because her eyes darted back and forth across the keyboard. He cleared his throat and her eyes looked straight at him. She stood up and met him half way as his stare made her body tingle.

"I know you must be bored just sitting around. I was wondering if you would like to tour the Opera House,"he voiced deeply.

She smiled, "Yes. I would love that."

She took his hand and let him lead them towards a corridor behind a drape. This led them to a library on the left and up some stairs on the right. He said it took a person up to an opening at the ceiling. They entered the large room filled with shelves and shelves of books. She couldn't believe how big it was. There was a piano sitting off to the side and a few tables with chairs. There was a fireplace to one side and three comfortable looking chairs placed around the wood carved mantle. It was dark wood and roses were carved entwining their vines and flowers along the surface.

"Can I come here?"

He looked around, "You are here now."

She smiled, "I mean when ever I want. I have a lot of time on my hands sometimes."

"Yes, that is fine. "

They moved out of that room and went down to another door which led up to a trap door on the floor into the costume room. They stopped when they reached the dark opening letting small slivers of light into the cramped space. Erik and her remained silent as he listened for any movement. After he felt that no one was in the room did he open the door cautiously. He helped her into the room and closed the door letting it blend in with the wooden floor. He walked over to the costumes and ran his hands through their textures and fabrics.

"Look for your size Shayne. Maybe you will find something more to your liking."

She pushed her hands into the clothes that hung on the movable rack. She found some ballerina slippers that fit her feet and a few pairs of tights. She rummaged through them and found some knee length tunics in the most bold of colors. Purple and red. Some rimmed in gold and silver with a few splashes of orange. She found a few more pairs of shoes that would suit for her needs and turned towards him. He grabbed a canvas bag and placed the clothes inside and then tucked it somewhere in his cloak.

They turned to the left and found themselves in a hall way with holes in the side wall. When Erik opened the eyes she saw a room with pictures of Napoleon and other people and places. A desk sat in the middle and books were behind the desk on one wall. Chairs were strewn in odd places across the room. She looked to Erik,

"What room is this?"

"The Emperor's room."

Her eyes widened as she looked back into the peep hole,"I can't believe I am seeing what I am seeing."

"Come on. There are many rooms ahead.

They traveled through secret tunnels and entered many rooms. Some were small dressing rooms and others were for the leads. They were opulently furnished and decorated with lavish materials. The room that she loved the most was a dungeon. To her surprise the room was very clean. She held on to Erik as they moved deeper into the room. Torture instruments hung along the walls and were drilled into tables. Shayne started thinking about the tables and the manacles that hung on the wall to the very back. She smiled wickedly and looked up at Erik through her eye lashes. He wasn't paying any attention to her as she thought of very bad things.

She shook her head as the gray light shone on the walls. She turned around and knew that if she tried any moves he would flip out. She couldn't help herself though. She had always been a little permiscious but that had gotten hidden away after her first husband. He knew how to break a woman especially emotionally. She stopped suddenly this is here and now.

"Do you think people really got tortured down here?" she asked expectantly.

Erik looked around, "Yes. I suppose there would have been at least one person tortured down here. There wouldn't be a torture chamber down here if there ever wasn't a victim."

She furrowed her brow, "That's horrible but kinda cool."

"It's not that cold in here."

Shayne laughed, "I didn't mean that it was cold. When I said cool I meant that I liked it. I guess you could say."

He smirked, "Ah, I see."

"So, you wanna show me another room."

"Anything you want," he murmured behind her.

He motioned through the door and led her back into the hall way. She followed him up some stairs and showed her all the towers and their secret doors. He said all four towers could be reached from the bottom of the opera house at the entrance. She only got to see two of the towers. The view from the top of the ceiling was incredible. She could see all the seats and the stage was clearly in sight if only the chandelier was not so spacious. It's clear rainbow crystals glittered in the candlelight.

"Don't you just love living here Erik?" she asked him as they left the top view.

He paused, "Yes, I suppose so. There could never be a better place than in an opera house."

"Where are we going next? What else is there in an opera house since I'm getting a private tour," she rubbed her hands together.

"I would recommend that we go to the top before anywhere else."

"Alright," she agreed.

He led her down a hallway and up a staircase. It had to be at least two more stories up from where they had been at. She was pretty winded by the time she climbed all those steps. As he opened the door she pulled her self up because the sun was setting and coloring the whole city. It took her breath away the beauty that one city could hold to a persons eye. She brought herself to the edge of the building and looked down at all the people on the sidewalk.

"Erik this is beautiful," Shayne said as the turn to him.

He quirked his lips, "Yes. It is an extraordinary part of this building."

He traveled the distance between them and stared into the horizon solemnly. Shayne glanced up at Erik his face was still and his eyes were glazed over. She leaned into him and wrapped her arm around his waist. His eyes met hers and sheepishly she smiled up at him.

"Come Shayne. We will go sit down. We will watch the sunset and then I will show you my kitchen," he said as he pulled her towards a statue. He leaned into a large crevice in the stone and pulled her next to him. She situated herself until she was comfortable and looked out to the city. He was sitting close to her and breathed deep in her scent. Jasmine.

"Erik."

"Yes Shayne."

He lets out a long held breath as she starts to speak, "Earlier when I kissed you I wanted to kiss you. I think you are an amazing person. Please don't get angry with me for wanting that. But if you are not comfortable with me being physical with you then I will stop."

"Shayne don't. It's not that I don't want to kiss you. I just need some time."

Close to her ear he stated, "Your so beautiful."

"What about Christine?"

He stiffened up next to her his throat thick, "Christine doesn't matter."

Shayne sighed, "Erik I know I don't measure up to her. I can't sing. I am a music lover but I am not like you. You are an angel and so is she."

Erik pushed up bringing her with him, "I am not an angel and if I am this is God's joke on this angel. The angel with the face of a devil."

"You are not a devil. You are a good man. Erik a face is nothing compared to what is inside a person."

He rubbed his temples, "Let's start heading back."

He grabbed her hand and looked into her eyes and then gazed away towards the doors, "I feel like we keep having this conversation over and over."

"That's because we are."

Shayne noticed he remained silent all the way back down into his home. He reached a door and revealed a small kitchen. There was a sink and a large cast iron oven. He had a fire to the side that held a cauldron for making stews and soups. A round wooden table sat to one side of the room in a corner. It was worn with scratches and chunks missing on the top.

He swung the cauldron out from over the fire and grabbed two bowls, "Do you want something to eat because the food is ready."

She shook her head knowing she would be hungry later if she didn't eat. He set two bowls down on the table and threw down some spoons. He found some bread and cut two large slices to go with their meal. He sat down in front of her and ate with no sound. She watched him momentarily and started eating herself. She finished after a few minutes of steady eating.

She leaned on her elbow and stared into space. She couldn't help that she was starting to want him. She was with him everyday and she saw more and more of him. She sat there for a long time and didn't even hear Erik the first time he asked her a question.

"Shayne did you hear me?" he said waving his hand in front of her.

"What?"

He pointed to her bowl, "I said do you want me to take your bowl?"

"Oh, yeah that is fine," she said as she stood up.

She strode to the door and asked, "Will you show me how to get back home?"

"Yes Shayne let me put these bowls away."

He washed the bowls his body feeling weak with emotion. How can he feel this way for Shayne but also have feelings for Christine. He did love Christine with everything he was but there was a tenderness for this woman who adored him. He could not sleep with her, and he could never show her what was beneath the mask. If he did either of the two then he would lose himself.

"Let's go," he said as he opened the door.

They went off to the right and headed back towards his lair. The velvet that hung over the opening came out in an alcove that was hidden between his table and a large shuffle of papers. Her feet felt like lead as she trudged up the steps to the room. Effortlessly she fell into the bed her mind elsewhere. The air around her felt cold and lifeless making goosebumps form on her legs and arms.

A knock sounded throughout the place Erik called home. He opened a door and grimaced, "What do you want Nadir?"

"Just coming to see how you were doing," he replied shortly.

Erik turned back around and said with disdain, "Here I am. Now you saw how I was, leave."

"Yes, I would love some tea," Nadir walked into the middle of the room.

"That's not what I said."

"I know."

Shayne peeked around the corner and saw a short middle sized Indian man. His hair and skin was dark and his eyes were gentle and brown. He was a handsome man a mustache covering his top lip and wrinkles creased around his eyes. She descended the steps and put on a smile.

Erik caught white out of the corner of his eyes and spun around. Sweet Shayne stood in the shadows her hands clasped in front of her like a young child. Her hair haloed around her face in fresh ringlets of copper fire. Her eyes were rimmed in red but the colors were so bright that he had to look away. The man with the dark features creased his forehead and looked to Erik.

Erik grimaced, "Nadir this is Shayne, Shayne this is Nadir. I'll meet you in the living room with some tea."

Nadir shook Shayne's hand and proceeded to walk through a curtain closest to the water and entered a room filled with pillows. A fireplace sat the the side and some large red and gold pillows were strewn everywhere. Some were piled up and others sat around a round table in the middle of the room. Nadir sat down close to the table on a large throw that was draped over the pillow. She felt like she was in an Indian palace as she plopped down across from Nadir.

Erik entered the the room with a silver tray. On top were three cups and a teapot. He placed them on the table and sat down in between Shayne and Nadir. After he poured the tea they sat silently with the cups in hand.

"So, Nadir, How do you and Erik know each other?" Shayne started the conversation since it seemed that no one else was going to.

Nadir lifted an eyebrow, "I met him in India."

"I didn't think Erik had any friends," she said not able to resist.

Nadir coughed on the tea as it went down his throat. Erik turned an evil glance her way. She just smiled.

"Where did you find her Erik?" Nadir questioned as he took another sip of tea.

He rolled his eyes, "I stole her."

"You what?"

"No I didn't steal her. She found her way down here somehow."

"Oh. Where did she come from?"

"Why don't you ask her that?"

Shayne glanced at both of them, "Well I came from the year 2007."

Nadir turned back to Erik, "Is she crazy?"

"No, I'm not crazy," she shrieked.

Erik nodded, "She's not crazy."

"Oh, and you would know," Nadir mumbled.

"I heard that."

Nadir shifted on the pillows, "Erik, I need to talk to you about something. Something private."

Erik glanced over at Shayne, "Would you please leave?"

Shayne stood up and left but had no intention of missing this conversation. She closed the drape and moved behind another curtain to hide. Erik peeked out the curtain a few minutes later. Even though she felt bad she also felt good because she had tricked him.

She tiptoed over to the water and stood silently up against the wall straining to hear. Her eyes closed so she could concentrate on the private conversation.

Erik turned around and looked at the curtain. He didn't hear a sound. Nadir faced him and started to whisper, "Do you think she is gone?"

"I'm pretty sure she is. I don't think she would disobey me."

Nadir sighed, "Well then. Let's get back to business. I'm not sure as of yet but I have been hearing rumors about some men. Men from India. They have a picture of you without your mask, and they are looking for you. Far and wide they are searching."

"Who sent them?"

"I think that Sultan Sherab sent them," Nadir said solemnly.

She heard Erik moved across the room, "Well, they will never find me here. Is that all?"

"Yes."

"Time for you to leave then."

Nadir did not stand up, "What about that girl? What are you going to do with her. Are you not teaching Christine also?"

"I'm not going to do anything with her. Now if you would leave I would appreciate it because I have things that I need to do."

Nadir stood up defeated knowing he would not get any more answers tonight.

Shayne ran across the room and up the stairs quickly before Erik and Nadir could leave the room. She sat up on the bed until she heard the shutting of the door. She did not see Erik for the rest of the night. After a short while she wandered to the library where she fell asleep reading one of his books on India.

**Don't forget to REVIEW. Thanks for Reading.**


End file.
